Cotton chooses Aggies, Sooners for Big 12 reunion

Updated 2:30 am, Monday, December 3, 2012

OU quarterback Landry Jones might have thought he would not have to face A&M again after the Aggies left for the SEC.

OU quarterback Landry Jones might have thought he would not have to face A&M again after the Aggies left for the SEC.

Photo: R. Yeatts, Getty Images

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COLLEGE STATION — Texas A&M only thought it had left its old Big 12 foes behind in July.

The 10-2 Aggies learned Sunday they will face 10-2 Oklahoma, a former Big 12 South opponent, on Jan. 4 in the Cotton Bowl. Kickoff will be at 7 at Cowboys Stadium in Arlington.

“Plenty of the (players') family and friends will be able to watch them play, and the hospitality is second-to-none,” A&M first-year coach Kevin Sumlin said of the Aggies staying close to home for their postseason shindig.

The contest pits Sumlin against his one-time boss at OU, Bob Stoops. Sumlin was a Sooners assistant, including a stint as offensive coordinator, from 2003-07.

“The Cotton Bowl has long been a marquee postseason destination ... and Cowboys Stadium is a great venue,” Stoops said.

The Aggies won at least 10 games for the first time since 1998, when they finished 11-3 and earned their lone Big 12 title. A&M also features the Heisman Trophy front-runner in freshman quarterback Johnny Manziel of Kerrville Tivy. Ballots are due today, and the Heisman ceremony is set for Saturday night in New York.

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The No. 9 Aggies played above expectations this season, including sweeping their road games in the Southeastern Conference. They also handed Alabama, which will play Notre Dame for the national title, its lone loss this season, 29-24 on Nov. 10 in Tuscaloosa.

No. 11 Oklahoma is coming off a 24-17 victory at TCU on Saturday. The Sooners tied Kansas State for first in the Big 12, but the Wildcats won the head-to-head battle and earned the league's Bowl Championship Series berth. OU's only other loss was against Notre Dame.

A&M and OU competed annually as Big 12 members from 1996-2012, before the Aggies departed for the SEC in July. The Sooners lead the series 19-11 and have won eight of their last nine meetings with the Aggies.

The Aggies last played in the Cotton Bowl two years ago, a 41-24 loss to LSU — now A&M's rival in the SEC.

“(We're) excited to go back to a great venue,” A&M senior receiver Ryan Swope said.

Six current A&M starters started in the Cotton Bowl two years ago, and 19 current Aggies played against the Tigers that night. A&M is 4-8 in its Cotton Bowl appearances, with its last win coming against Notre Dame after the 1987 season.

“We hit a home run,” said Tommy Bain, Cotton Bowl chairman, of pitting A&M and OU. “When our team selection committee met for the first time a few weeks ago, we circled this matchup as the one we most wanted.”

A week earlier, indications were the Capital One Bowl would select the Aggies. But the Orlando, Fla., game instead chose SEC title-game loser Georgia for a matchup with Nebraska of the Big Ten.

A&M spokesman Alan Cannon said Sunday athletic director Eric Hyman has suspended the duo, and Cannon offered no details on the length of suspension.

Richmond, a linebacker, and Marshall, a defensive back, redshirted this season. OU also had two players — receiver Jalen Saunders and defensive back Cortez Johnson — arrested for marijuana possession Sunday.